


Animalia

by springsnow



Series: b i g s t r o n g f a m i l y [7]
Category: Professional Wrestling, World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, And Trent Is Probably At Home Day Drinking White Wine Like A Suburban Mom, Fluff, Gen, Light Angst, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Non-Sexual Age Play, Pete Wants Tyler To Open Up, Short One Shot, Tyler Likes Otters, Zoo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-30
Updated: 2019-08-30
Packaged: 2020-09-30 14:03:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20448317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/springsnow/pseuds/springsnow
Summary: A trip to the zoo and a conversation about a certain Austrian.





	Animalia

**Author's Note:**

> I've been suffering bad from writer's block lately but managed to bash this out. It's another one with big Pete taking care of little Tyler, while Trent has a day off at home. Enjoy.

Tyler leaned over the wall of the enclosure, gazing down at the otters frolicking in the water.

“Do you know what kind of otters they are?” Pete asked, walking up next to him.

“Sea otters?” Tyler ventured.

“Not quite. Sign says they’re Asian short-clawed otters.” Pete peered down at them. “Cute, aren’t they?”

Tyler nodded. “Can we get one?”

“I don’t think you’re allowed to keep an otter as a pet, love,” Pete smiled. “But I can get you a stuffed one from the gift shop.”

Tyler pouted a little, but said nothing. He’d been pretty quiet most of the morning, but it didn’t bother Pete too much; he could hardly force him to talk. And he at least seemed to be engrossed in the animals. He’d spent ages watching the monkeys, utterly transfixed, and had only moved (reluctantly, at that) when Pete had gently reminded him it was a big zoo and they had a lot more to go around before it closed.

It had started life as Trent’s idea, but the zoo thing had come from Pete. Tyler needed a day off, they’d agreed. All the stress and pressure of Takeover must have been getting to him, even if he wasn’t showing it, and he needed a day—just one—in headspace before Cardiff. It gave them all a chance to unwind: Trent could stay at home and have a day off, Tyler got to be little, and Pete…well, he had to admit, he was enjoying himself too. He hadn’t been to a zoo in years; the last time, he was fairly certain, had been a school trip when he was ten. He couldn’t remember his mom ever taking him or Damian to the zoo, and it was highly unlikely the old man would have—

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. _Don’t think about him_, he thought firmly. _The old bastard’s where he belongs now._

“Pete?”

He opened his eyes again and saw Tyler looking at him, concerned. “Are you OK?”

He smiled. “I’m fine, Ty. Shall we go get some lunch? I’m getting hungry.”

==

To both Pete’s surprise and relief, the restaurant did, in fact, serve vegan options, although they were a little limited. He brought a salad and a can of Diet Coke for himself, vegan nuggets and fries with apple juice for Tyler, and sat down in a quiet corner of the restaurant. Not that it made much of a difference; the whole zoo was surprisingly quiet, considering it was still, just about, the school holidays—unless, of course, they’d changed the dates since Pete had been at school.

“Tyler?” he said, trying to think of how to phrase the question he was about to ask.

“Yeah?”

“Can I talk to you about Cardiff?”

Tyler, who seemed more preoccupied with getting the right amount of ketchup on a fry than with talking about one of the biggest matches of his career so far, nodded.

“How…how do you feel about it?”

Tyler’s brow furrowed. “About what?”

“The match.” Pete knew that Tyler wasn’t being deliberately obtuse; emotionally, he was about seven years old right now. Seven-year-olds, while they may be good at solving problems with what information and resources they already possess, are not exactly renowned for their skills in matters such as reading tone. If anything, Pete was being the difficult one.

Tyler munched on his fry, looking thoughtful. “I guess I’m kinda worried,” he admitted quietly.

“About getting hurt?” Pete asked. Tyler shook his head.

“It’s just…everyone’s counting on me to win,” he said. “What if I don’t? What if they get angry?”

Pete tutted and reached across the table, gently taking Tyler’s hand. “Nobody’s going to get angry, Ty. I promise. We’re all proud of you for being so brave.”

“But—I—” Tyler’s face scrunched up.

“Ty? Tyler, take a deep breath for me,” Pete said quickly. “Come on now. It’s OK.”

Tyler swallowed and took a few deep breaths, closing his eyes. He sat where he was for a moment, then opened his eyes and looked steadily at Pete. “I’m OK,” he said softly.

“Good. I understand, Ty. I felt the same about…about him. But did you get angry at me when I didn’t win?”

“No…”

“Did Trent?”

“No, I guess not…”

“Did Uncle Will?”

Tyler smiled a little, and Pete smiled back. “I guess you’re right.”

“Exactly. You’ve been so brave. Trent can’t stop telling me how proud he is of you. All you can do is go out there and do your best, alright?” He gently squeezed Tyler’s hand. “Now c’mon. Finish your lunch and let’s go look at the anteaters.”

Tyler brightened immediately. He finished his food and his apple juice, grudgingly let Pete wipe a stray blob of ketchup off his cheek, and practically ran back outside to look at more animals. Pete walked behind him, smiling indulgently. For now, all thoughts of Cardiff were banished from his mind. It wasn’t going to be easy, he knew that, but they’d cross that bridge when they got to it. Tyler was quite happy running around gawking at the animals, and right now, that was all that mattered.


End file.
